


Warriors, Clan Beginnings: Rebuilding - Book 1

by Prussiasaurus_Rex



Category: Warriors - Erin Hunter
Genre: F/M, Founding of new clans, Single POV
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-28
Updated: 2018-05-28
Packaged: 2019-05-04 11:55:31
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,899
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14592510
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Prussiasaurus_Rex/pseuds/Prussiasaurus_Rex
Summary: Rhythm is born to a small band of loners who live peacefully in the forest. When they are approached by clan-cats offering them a place, his mother decides to take the opportunity and they move into the clan. However, the clan has been through horrible tragedy after tragedy, and are struggling to rebuild. Rhythm decides he's the one who must step up to save his new clan, and will stop at nothing until his clan rises to its former glory.Prequel series to Destiny of the Moon





	1. Allegiances

**Author's Note:**

> This takes place like, 100 years before the events of Destiny of the Moon.

**The Clan  
** Leader: Frogstar - Reddish-brown tom with blue-green eyes

Deputy: Ferretspot - White she-cat with ginger patches and bright green eyes

Medicine Cat: Littleripple - Dark gray tabby tom with blue eyes

Warriors:

Cloverjaw - Blue-gray tom with green eyes

Wolfears - Dark ginger tom with deep green eyes

Beechstalk - Golden tabby tom with light blue eyes

Ivyshade - Ginger and white she-cat with yellow eyes

Deerflash - Dark brown tabby tom with blue eyes

Cypressflame - Light brown tom with blue eyes

Maplefrost - Sandy brown she-cat with deep green eyes

Queens:

Cloudywater - Gray and white tabby with pale green eyes, mother to Frogstar's kit (Lostkit, a gray tabby tom)

Tinystorm - Pale tortoiseshell with amber eyes, mother to Beechstalk's kits (Redkit, a ginger tom, Skykit, a pale gray she-cat, and Gingerkit, a ginger tom)

 

Family Relations include:

Frogstar and Cloudywater are the parents of Lostkit.

Frogstar and Wolfears are brothers.

Ferretspot and Wolfears are mates.

Ferretspot and Ivyshade are sisters.

Littleripple and Cloverjaw are brothers.

Beechstalk and Tinystorm are the parents of Redkit, Skykit, and Gingerkit.

Deerflash is the father of Cypressflame and Maplefrost.

Cloudywater and Tinystorm are sisters.

 

**The Loner Group**

Leader: Bee - Gray she-cat with thick black stripes and amber eyes

Cats:

Howl - Large, scarred gray tom with blue eyes

Sweet - Beautiful golden tabby she-cat with blue eyes

Soot - Handsome gray tabby tom with amber eyes

Rhythm - Dark gray tabby tom with amber eyes

 

Family Relations include:

Bee is the mother of Rhythm.

Bee is the aunt and adoptive mother of Sweet and Soot.

Howl is the father of Sweet and Soot.

 

**Unaffiliated Cats**

Chirp - Brown and white tabby queen with green eyes, heavily expecting

Cassandra - Black and white queen with amber eyes (Ciera, a gray and white she-kit, Storm, a black and white tom, Zoe, a pale gray tabby she-kit, and Wren, a black she-kit)

Dewey - White tom with blue eyes, deaf

Saffira - Pale tortoiseshell she-cat with blue eyes

Wally - Black tom with amber eyes

 

Family Relations include:

Cassandra is the mother of Dewey, Saffira, Wally, Ciera, Storm, Zoe, and Wren.


	2. Prologue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Frogstar is trying his best.  
> Bee has given birth to her son, and converses with her sister.

Frogstar sat on the large rock that served as his den and looked sadly over his clan-mates. Many had died over the past few moons, and it was beginning to really take a toll on the tom.

First it had been a flood. It had rained heavily for two full days, and the lake had filled the entirety of the lowlands, which included most of the forest. The clan had been forced to relocate to the hills just to not drown, and that had proved much more difficult than expected. They lived fairly close to the lake, and on the opposite side of the territory from the high grounds. On the way there, several kits and apprentices had died due to the rising water and inability of most cats to swim. Frogstar had lost three lives himself, trying desperately to save any cats he could before Littleripple had dragged him out of the water and told him that if he kept killing himself, the clan would be left in ruins without their leader. Frogstar had only become leader shortly before this, and it was his first taste of the realization that despite his position, there were times he would be utterly powerless to help his clan-mates.

This was followed by a horrible famine, as much of the prey had been chased out by the floods, other than the birds that nested in the trees. It was not often that the clan ate birds before then, and they had since become a main focus of their diet, as they had been the only thing there for a while. The famine had mainly affected elders, but most other cats managed to make it through. While it had been a very difficult trial to face, it was more livable than the flood had been.

Then the sickness began.

Frogstar wasn't sure where the sickness had come from, but one day a warrior had gone to Littleripple complaining about not feeling well. A few days later, the first cat had died and another cat had fallen ill. It had spread quickly through the camp, dropping cats like flies, and it had taken the biggest toll out of any of the other disasters that had plagued them. He had just been forced to watch helplessly as the illness took each of his clan-mates, until he had caught it himself. He, of course, had died and come back, so he had an idea of how horrific each cat's death was, and how bad the illness made him feel.

And now the illness was mostly beginning to fade, but not before striking those Frogstar held the most dear. His mate, Cloudywater, and their kits were all in the medicine cat den, struggling desperately to survive. Littleripple had finally started to find something that seemed to be working, but there was still a high chance of death. Very few cats who caught the disease had managed to survive, even with Littleripple's help. It was heartbreaking.

"Frogstar, I have sad news." Littleripple called softly. Frogstar twitched his tail as he glanced toward the medicine cat, and moved to the side to give the dark gray tabby a place at his side. Littleripple hopped up on the rock and sat, looking quietly off toward his den.

"Who died?" Frogstar finally asked, having to force away the lump in his throat to even manage a croak. Littleripple didn't turn his gaze to Frogstar, just kept his eyes focused on the medicine den.

"One of your sons." he finally answered. Frogstar felt his heart twist as the image of Cloudywater sprang to his mind, their three kits cuddled up to her. The kits were so small, hardly five days old, and already one of the little gray bundles was hunting with StarClan. Frogstar focused his gaze between his paws, trying his best not to seem to upset. The clan needed him to be strong now, he couldn't let himself get lost in his emotions.

"How are Cloudywater and the others?" he questioned, his voice very quiet.

"Cloudywater is as well as can be expected. She's very upset over your son, of course, but she's doing her best to hold it together for the other two... Cloudywater is a strong young warrior, I think she'll make it through this. But the kits... They don't stand a chance, Frogstar. They're too small, and I just can't help them. I wish I could do something for them, but I'm afraid they'll likely die over the next few days." Littleripple answered.

"Oh." Frogstar couldn't help the voice crack this time. He adored Cloudywater, and they had decided from the moment they became mates that they both wanted to have kits. And now that they had finally had them, everything seemed to be crashing down around them. Littleripple pressed lightly against the leader, as if attempting in his own awkward way to comfort him.

"I'm sorry, I'm only trying to be honest with you. I didn't mean to sound so cold." Littleripple murmured. Frogstar sighed heavily.

"I know, Littleripple. And I appreciate that, false hope would only make it worse when they do pass. It's still hard to hear... They're my kits, Cloudywater and I were so excited to have them. Now they're all going to be gone, and we don't even get to watch them grow up. It's not fair." he growled, shaking a bit. Littleripple glanced up toward the sky.

"Only StarClan knows why things have been so bad recently. You've been a fantastic warrior, I can't understand why your few moons of leadership have been through so much heartache." Littleripple noted.

"I've tried my best." Frogstar responded.

"I know that, and the clan knows as well. You're not to blame for the flood, the famine, or the illness. A lesser cat might have abandoned the clan by now under all the pressure." Littleripple assured him. Frogstar sighed and glanced down toward the center of camp.

"Too many cats have died recently, I don't know how much more we can take of this." he whispered. His gaze was fixed on the corpse of Frostblaze, which rested away from any of the dens so as to keep from spreading the illness to any other cats. Deerflash was settled as close to the body as Littleripple had allowed, grieving for his mate. Their kits, Cypresspaw and Maplepaw, still sent disbelieving glanced toward their mother's body every few moments. They were about halfway through their apprenticeships, but somehow seemed to look like kits as they cuddled near their grieving father. Frostblaze and Deerflash had been young, healthy warriors when they had their kits, and clearly expected to live to see the pair become warriors. Now, Deerflash would have to do that alone.

Littleripple followed Frogstar's gaze to Frostblaze and nodded solemnly. "She was a good warrior, she should still be serving her clan for many moons to come. It's a shame such good warriors are being taken from us in our time of need." he agreed softly. Frogstar glanced to his medicine cat.

"Do you think we'll survive through this as a clan?" he asked.

"Of course," Littleripple responded without hesitation. "I know times have been hard, but that's only brought us closer. Frostblaze and many other warriors may be gone, but the only sick cats remaining are Cloudywater and the kits. After they die or recover, these deaths will hopefully be over. We need to be very careful to make sure we don't catch anything, and then we can hopefully put all these deaths behind us and move forward. More kits will be born, and one day these events won't even be fresh in our memories. Good must be just around the bend." he added, his eyes looking fierce.

Frogstar was impressed by how much hope Littleripple had for the future, and envied him. He wished he could feel that positive about the way things were going, but being surrounded by death and stress wasn't helping him do so. He sent another look toward the medicine cat den, where Cloudywater was just stepping out of. In her jaws was the darker gray kit, presumably the one who died. Frogstar watched as his gray and white mate padded quietly to Frostblaze's body and laid the kit at her belly. Cloudywater then pressed her face softly against Frostblaze's neck.

"Please help guide him through StarClan, he has no one else." she begged softly, and Frogstar felt his heart break for his mate. He could tell that she was also trying to put on a brave face, but that there were huge cracks already in that façade. With that, Cloudywater turned and trudged back toward the den, her tail dragging behind her as though too heavy to raise.

"Maybe you should speak with her. She needs your support." Littleripple pointed out.

"Of course she does. Everyone does. It's still hard to balance... Do you think you can take over my hunting patrol with Ferretspot and Tinystorm? I know you don't normally do patrols like that, but..."

"Of course. You need some space to speak privately with your mate. We can speak again once I return."

* * *

Bee lay curled gently around her kit. She was very thin, and he was very small, but she was still determined to do whatever she needed to make sure that her little one was alright. She hadn't gone through all the trouble of carrying him during her illness just for him to die, and luckily he did seem to be breathing. She carefully cleaned him up a bit more, just to make sure that he was clean and able to breath properly.

A soft rustle from the entrance of her den, a gap between the roots of the tree above her. She growled as she turned to face the intruder, her pelt raising. After a moment, she saw it was only Howl, the mate of her sister, and relaxed before going back to caring for her kit. Howl stepped toward her quietly, and settled down near her. She was grateful that he seemed to be keeping his distance from her, not yet feeling comfortable with even the familiar tom being too close to her.

"You seem well." Howl noted, curling his tail around his paws. Bee looked up tiredly at the scarred gray tom.

"As well as I can, I guess." she mumbled. Howl shrugged.

"Honey seemed like she was having a much harder time with Sweet and Soot, and she was completely healthy at that time. You've always been a tough she-cat." he responded. Bee rested her head between her paws.

"I do try." she agreed softly. The pair sat in a relatively comfortable silence for a few moments, Bee peacefully watching as her little son nursed for the first time. He was so small, much smaller than she remembered her sister's kits being. "How's Honey doing out there?" she asked after another moment. Howl looked solemnly toward the den's exit, and after a moment Bee was sure he wasn't going to speak. "Howl?"

"She's been coughing a lot recently." he finally responded. Bee felt her heart drop at Howl's admission, remembering how her own ailment had begun as just a simple cough, and had quickly spiraled into something much, much worse.

"It's been a bit dry the past few days, hasn't it? Especially for this season." Bee pointed out, trying her best to be hopeful and come up with some explanation, ANY explanation that could cause a coughing fit. Anything but illness.

"It has. Hopefully the rains will come soon." Howl agreed, seeming to understand what she was hoping for. Bee was grateful to the tom for humoring her. She had not originally liked Howl for Honey, thinking he was too rough and rude, but he had come to prove himself as a cat who could easily be considerate if given the chance. They sat in silence again, this one more unsettled than the last, before Howl finally stood.

"I'll be seeing you later, after I go out for a hunt. I want to check on Honey again before that, so I should get to it." he decided. Bee dipped her head.

"Happy hunting, Howl." she replied softly. Howl dipped his head once more before turning and bounding out of the den.

Bee watched the tom's gray tail disappear before turning her attention again to her son. She noted sadly that his pelt was dark gray looked very much like her own, and thought about the tom who had fathered this little one. Rhythm had been a handsome white tom who she had met one day while out hunting. She had accidentally crept up on him and his sister when they were out exploring, and had startled him badly by not realizing he was deaf. She had chased them off the first day, but that white tom had returned time and time again, and eventually she had started to grow somewhat fond of the adventurous tom. He was not a wild cat, but he clearly had interest in what it would be like to be one.

Eventually Bee had found the she-cat who had been with the tom, who had of course informed Bee that the white tom's name was Rhythm, and introduced herself as his sister Cassandra. She had explained how she tended to communicate with him through mostly tail motions and some flicks of her paws and ears, and Bee had quickly picked up on it and proceeded to spent a lot more time with Rhythm until he finally decided to leave his home to be with her in the wild. She had been happy with this at first. She could hunt with him and teach him how to do it as well.

Everything had changed when she got sick.

At first it was normal, and she would hunt with him happily to help provide for themselves, Honey, Howl, and the kits. But then she had found out that she was expecting Rhythm's kits, and he had quickly become very insistent on having her stay back while he either hunted with Howl, or snuck of to do it alone. The whole thing had made Bee very nervous, as her mate was clearly oblivious to the danger when he couldn't hear it. Eventually, it had been his downfall, when he was killed by a dog. Howl had found what was left of the body, and buried it, before coming to deliver the news to Bee.

She had been devastated. She had deeply loved Rhythm, and been excited to raise her litter with him. Coupled with her illness, the death was unbearable, and she had given up eating and fighting for a while, until Honey had snapped her out of it by pointing out that not only would Rhythm want her to continue on, but that he would also live on in a way. In their kits. Or rather, the single kit that currently rested at Bee's belly. He was still peacefully nursing, unaware of all the pain that surrounded his mother, over the fact that his father no longer lived.

"Bee?" a voice squeaked, drawing out her name longer than it needed to be. Bee glanced up to see two tiny forms in the entrance of the den, one golden and one gray. Her sisters two kits, Soot and Sweet, carefully crept into the den, taking care not to trip over any of the roots that surrounded the den entrance. Bee purred softly at the two kits, feeling her spirits brighten a bit at the sight of her kin.

"What are you two doing in here?" she asked. Sweet paused mid-step, seeming unsure over whether or not she was welcome, but Soot continued toward her with an indifferent look on his face.

"Father went off hunting, so Mama told us we could come see you if we behaved." he responded. Bee heard her sister's purr before she saw her.

"I'm sorry if they're bothering you, I just thought it would be good for them to meet the new kit... I wanted to see him as well." Honey called softly, her voice having a raspier edge than usual. Bee glanced up toward her sister, noting that while she looked somewhat slender, it was no more than she had been before giving birth to her kits. Her voice was off, sure, but overall there seemed to be no other sign of illness. At least, not physically.

"They're fine, so long as they know not to get too worked up. He's very small, so you must be careful." she instructed, looking between Sweet and Soot. Soot looked disappointed, and after coming a bit closer, Sweet mirrored the sentiment.

"Why is there only one? Shouldn't he have a brother or sister, like us or you?" Soot squeaked out, looking a bit miffed. Bee purred softly.

"Most do, he just happens to be the only kit of his litter. But that's fine, I think he's perfect as he is." she explained. Sweet nodded in agreement, despite looking unimpressed.

"He looks cute and small, but we thought we were going to have a lot more friends to play with." she explained. Bee shook her head.

"I'm sorry you two, but even if there were more, he's not big enough to play yet. He'll need many days before he can even move around." she pointed out. Soot now somehow appeared even more disinterested, and turned to his siter.

"Come on, Sweet, let's go play!" he squeaked, turning and padding out of the den. Sweet looked to her mother, who nodded, then turned and followed quickly after her brother. Bee watched the kits go before turning her attention to her sister.

"I was thinking of naming him after his father." she informed her. Honey crouched at the corner of the den, looking tired.

"Rhythm was a nice cat, I'm sure he would be proud to have his son named after him." she agreed softly. Bee beamed at her sister, then glanced down at the little dark gray tabby, purring softly at him.

"Do you like that name, Rhythm? I'm sure you'll be just like him." she decided. Rhythm didn't respond, of course, but wriggled closer to his mother after he finished nursing. The tiny tabby seemed to be falling asleep, though Bee couldn't be entirely sure. His eyes were always closed, after all.

"I think he likes it." Honey mumbled. Bee turned her attention to Honey again, feeling worried by the lack of enthusiasm. It was so unlike her sister to sound so exhausted and dull.

"Are you alright?" she asked. Honey nodded slowly, shifting a step back from her sister.

"Of course I am. Just really tired... Sweet and Soot are getting more and more active, you know?" she pointed out. Bee couldn't help but feel like her sister was lying, but decided not to call her out on it. She looked troubled enough as it was.

"Is there something you wanted to talk to me about? You seem troubled." Bee asked. Honey looked to her sister in surprised, then sighed and looked down at her paws.

"...I've heard rumors of cats that live deep in the forests together. Like us, but... With more cats, and not all of them related." she explained. Bee stared at her sister blankly, wondering what she was talking about. Cats in a forest group? She had heard tales like that from cats like Cassandra, who were not accustomed to the wild, but never from wild cats like her own kin!

"That's just a silly kits-tale." she pointed out. Honey immediately shook her head.

"No, I don't think it is! I had a dream the other night!" she insisted. Now Bee was sure her sister was crazy.

"Honey, you know that dreams aren't necessarily true, right?" Bee gently asked. Honey looked insulted.

"Of course I do, but this one was! I spoke with a cat and she had stars in her fur! She told me all about what she called 'the clan' and told me that I should take my kin and find them! And the way she described it was so wonderful! Our kits would be safe, we would have more help to keep ourselves fed, and we would have friends who could help us out as we get older! I would love to join one of these clans, wouldn't you?" Honey explained, her voice almost pleading toward the end. Bee watched her sister sadly, hating to see her sister looking so... Delusional.

"It's still a dream, or you're seeing things! Do you have a fever? Maybe you should go rest for a bit, I could make Sweet and Soot play in here so you can get a nap in." she offered. Honey looked even more hurt.

"I'm not crazy, Bee! I may be a bit sick, but it's not that bad! I know what I saw in my dream was true, and I think we need to listen to that starry cat's words! Please, Bee, listen to me." she begged. Bee shook her head.

"You need to rest." she firmly responded. Honey's pelt puffed up in anger, and she turned on her heels and stalked toward the entrance. She paused there, and sent one final glance back at her sister.

"We're making a grave mistake here by ignoring the star-cat. Don't you forget that."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story is very much on the side. This will be updated once a month, compared to the main series, which is once a week. That means that sometimes you will get two chapters at once while sometimes it's only one, so there's that I guess.  
> This does not mean it will stay that way forever. If I get support on this story or really start to get into it, I may update it twice a month, but I don't want to make a promise I can't keep, so it will remain once a month unless I state otherwise.


End file.
